Appeal No. 2005-0948 Page 6
Application No. 09/922,938
As shown in Figures 1 and 4 of Clay, the clamping mechanism further includes
an eye bolt having a head portion 21 connected to a threaded shank portion 20. The
head portion 21 seats around the cam 13 while the shank portion of the eye bolt
extends through a vertically extending opening or hole 26 which is situated in the center
of the support member 12 between the two support surfaces 17. The shank portion
extends through an elongate, longitudinally extending opening or slot, located at 94,
formed in the bottom of the banjo. The shank portion 20 of the eye bolt is connected to
a clamping plate 22 and extends through a bore 25 in the clamping plate 22. The shank
portion 20 is threaded into a suitable clamp nut 70 which holds the plate 22 from below.
Clay's eye bolt constitutes a connector for connecting the cam 13 to the clamping
plate 22. The camming mechanism includes the cam shaft comprised of the bearing
members 15 and cam 13, support block 12 and the eye bolt. The cam 13 is eccentric
with respect to its integral bearing members 15 and has a larger diameter than the
bearing members. As a result, when the cam shaft is rotated the cam moves up and
down in relation to the bearing members and in relation to the support block. The up
and down movement of the center of the cam is transferred to the eye bolt, causing a
generally linear motion in the eye bolt. This motion of the eye bolt causes a
corresponding motion of the clamping plate 22. When the cam is rotated away from its
bottom dead center position, the clamping plate will move to the clamped position where
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Last modified: November 3, 2007